vivalaooc | Test Drive Meme #1

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Test Drive Meme #1

TEST DRIVE #1

The day begins as any other, you’re going about your day, living your life, when, without warning, you feel the world around you shift on its axis. You feel a great tear, welling from the depths of your soul as you are ripped from all you have known. If you’re lucky, you arrive in the wilderness of an unfamiliar world, where the language is foreign and the people are hostile. To make your escape, you must learn some language, flee, and occasionally fight, all to find your way off the floating isles you find yourself on and to the great ocean below, where rebel forces will welcome you.

If you’re unlucky, you materialize within a room full of armed guards and are quickly subdued with charged nets, stripped of your belongings, fitted with strange devices that suppress your powers and pressed into servitude. Your days are unimaginable pain and toil.

Fortunately, even in this world, there is still hope. For the denizens of this world have not given up. And it is for that dream of salvation that the Crimson Corsairs raise their flags and sail - for liberation. Perhaps you are one who has lived their entire life under the oppressive yoke of the Empire. Perhaps you have seen first hand your family and friends cut down by nobles hunting men for sport, or perhaps you have run afoul with the church and barely escaped with your life. No matter your origin, the Corsairs sail for you, for your freedom, for your life. And today, a taste of freedom will be won for all.

ARRIVAL/LIBERATION
This month, the Crimson Corsairs raided a Larendt labor camp in order to obtain much-needed parts and textiles as well as liberate another batch of servants for the cause. The raid was executed under the cover of night, with one team sweeping the dormitories and gathering as many servants as they could while the other team hit factories as they could, focusing on taking important items like ship parts and clothing, loading them into prepared trams and fleeing before the guard could mobilize. The operation, thankfully, went off without a hitch, and the Corsairs were able to usher a number of servants into their waiting ships.

As dawn breaks, the raiding fleet docks at Flotsam as the city-fleet begins the long journey away from the continent before a retaliation fleet can be mobilized. The former servants are finally let above deck. The sun is beating down hard on them, its brilliance marking their first step into freedom.

Corsairs on the fleet will have a lot to do - the new arrivals will need to be sorted, clothed, and fed. Many are emaciated from the conditions in the labor camp, and the former servants will be immediately ushered to a mess hall for their first meal as free folk. Corsairs will be needed to organize the movement, prepare and serve the food, and also just sit with them and talk to them, helping them adjust and filling them in on the situation.

Former servants will have found the entire process exhausting to say the least. They were awoken in the dead of night by heavily armed people quickly moving through, shattering their chains and ushering them into ships. The entire night was spent sailing, and while the hull is dark it is crowded and difficult to sleep in. Finally, upon arrival they are ushered into a meal hall and served a humble meal - but a meal that far exceeds anything that was ever served at the servant’s table. What is known is that they are now free.

MEANWHILE IN THE WATERLOGGED ROW…

With another successful mission under their belt and their duties more or less complete, the triumphant Corsairs observe a time-honored tradition: heading to the Waterlogged Row and getting absolutely shitfaced on awful grog.

The mood is jubilant and self-congratulatory, with drinking songs ringing out across Flotsam. In consideration to other residents, the Row is currently moored a good distance from the residential areas to keep the celebrations from disturbing what little peace there is in the chaotic town that is Flotsam. But for those who participated in the mission, tonight is about celebration. Singing, storytelling, socializing, this is the glue that holds the operations team together. And as the Crimson Corsairs do not officially recognize a drinking age, everyone is welcome! Even if they probably shouldn’t be!

New arrivals are, of course, not at all restricted so those who finish their meal and go exploring will quickly find the Row, as well as many Corsairs eager to buy them a pint to toast their newfound freedom.

MAKING THE GOOD STUFF

Elysium often serves as the crux of Corsair operations, and the next operation is no different. While the operations team is carousing and toasting their success, the planning team is hard at work preparing for the next mission.

The order of the day is gathering, which has brought the team to the forests outside of Elysium. In the coming month, Elysium will host a lavish party for the guards of a certain continent, and it is the duty of the gatherers to ensure that any drink served is “enhanced”, with such potency that they won’t be in any position to do their duty when the raiders strike.

Any herbology specialists will be absolutely vital for this operation. While the Corsairs have some documents and know, generally, what they’re looking for, there are a wide variety of things that grow within the forest, many of which can be quite dangerous.

Those new to gathering will really need to watch their step. Elysium is rich in hallucinogens, and a whiff of the wrong flower or mushroom could leave them contemplating their navel for the next hour. Tasting is out of the question, but what they don’t know can’t hurt them right? After all, the Elysium workers spend a lot of time eradicating poisoned growths to keep wandering nobles safe so anything they find can’t be THAT bad. Right?

And of course, for experienced foragers, they will find an entirely new duty thrust upon them - keeping the newbies in line. Really, how can they expect anything productive to be done when they send a bunch of green recruits into a forest full of hallucinogens?

EDUCATION AS THE BOMBS FALL

New Corsairs almost always find themselves in the Vault. Nestled in the earth and subject to the constant pounding of munitions overhead, the Vault is the repository of knowledge for the Crimson Corsairs and the place where new inductees are educated. Language instruction, education on the world and its people, writing, reading, arithmetic, just about any kind of learning can be done in the Vault’s halls.

Notable about the Vault’s education is how deeply tied it is to the Crimson Corsair’s broader philosophy - everyone’s unique talents and insight have value. As such, Corsairs are often called to the Vault to share their specialized expertise. While many Corsairs do choose to become full-time teachers, any Corsair can come and teach a class.

For the new Corsairs, now is a time to learn and train, acclimate themselves to their situation and figure out where they want to go from here. For established Corsairs, this is an opportunity to meet the new recruits and help train them so they can help with the cause. Those who might be students today will be comrades standing at your side tomorrow, so teach them well.

DANGER AT SEA

As the most mobile of the Corsair’s settlements and the only obvious Imperial target, Flotsam is well equipped to deal with any number of dangers. One such danger is the enormous sea monsters who dwell within the Eternal Ocean. While many are not too keen to tangle with such a large fleet, occasionally a monster will become angry or territorial enough to try to attack the fleet.

And it is for that reason that the Corsairs now find themselves battling a massive sea serpent that has stretched itself across the western edge of the fleet. New Corsairs aren’t expected to assist in this battle, but as the sinking of Flotsam would be VERY BAD for those who are currently trying to live on it, many will jump in anyway, especially as they should have been issued weapons. As to established Corsairs, well, you know the drill by now. Monster bad, try to sink ship, let’s convince it that there are easier marks than the pride of the Corsair fleet.

Some Corsairs will need to man the cannons to blow it away, but many will get up close and personal, jumping into melee range to drive it away from the ships and mitigate as much damage as they can. Others still will provide support from the back with magic or ranged weaponry, and still others will need to weave their way in between the battle to carry out wounded Corsairs for medical attention. Whatever your specialty, your city needs you. Best get to work.

WILDCARD

Have an idea for your own prompt? Feel free to make any prompt that you think would fit!

OOC
Welcome to the first Test-Drive Meme for Viva La! All threads here may be considered canon once characters have entered the game. Threads here are eligible for use as a roleplay sample for applications, which will open on the 15th of June at midnight.

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[Jamil lets Kalim grab at his sleeves, at least at first. Kalim's voice is low enough not to carry, but Jamil still can't help but shush him as soon as he hears Kalim implying escape. This is exactly what he was afraid of.]

Don't be ridiculous, Kalim! [Jamil yanks his arms out of Kalim's grip to emphasize the point, even as he keeps his voice hushed.] I've been working my way into their good graces for months. My position is precarious enough as it is, do not mess this up for me now!

Wh. What?

[ Kalim's face falls, the picture of confusion and dismay. ]

But...but don't you want... Jamil, you really want to stay with them...?

[ They didn't look like awful people, he supposes – and Jamil clearly isn't having to do backbreaking labour in a mine or a factory or anything like that. But... ]

I--

[Jamil stops short. He isn't sure why. It's not that Kalim's reaction surprises him--of course he'd be dismayed that Jamil doesn't want to just drop everything and run off with him on a whim, that's how Kalim has always been--but the way he frames it makes all of Jamil's protests die in his throat.

Of course he doesn't want to stay with them. Every second he has to spend demurely groveling just for access to basic education feels like torture. It's just--it can't be that easy. He has a plan. He's spent months clawing out this little cliffside handhold and as long as he can stay clinging on to it and inching his way up everything is going to pan out eventually. Kalim can't just come waltzing in out of nowhere and offer him the easy way out after all this time, it doesn't work that way.

Whatever Kalim is offering him tonight can't possibly be more reliable than his own plans, can't possibly be worth the risk of losing them all.]

I already have a plan, Kalim. I don't need your help.

[ Kalim relaxes just slightly at the confirmation that Jamil does intend to get out of there, that his understanding of the situation wasn't somehow completely skewed, but...

He leans forward, his eyebrows pinching together slightly. He looks concerned. ]

Is it like your winter break plan?

[What, in terms of snake-charming them into giving him everything he wants? He hasn't tried it on them yet. Not when he's only at 30% capacity at best. He can't risk it failing somehow and causing everything to collapse, not with the freshly minted viscountess now breathing down his neck.]

No, right now I'm still getting them to trust me. If I can keep this up just a little longer I might be able to get access to their finances, and...

[...Start hiding escape funds in the monthly budget, squirreling away money little by little until he finally has enough to buy his way into Elysium and get that suppression band off by himself, unnoticed and with no way to trace him. No way to bring him back. No joining the Corsairs needed.

It'll work. It'll take fucking forever. He knows as soon as the words leave his mouth that Kalim won't want to wait that long.]

Jamil...

[ Kalim gazes at him imploringly. ]

... That sounds really risky. What if they figure it out and you get in trouble? Even if they like you...

[ He's pretty clueless, but Kalim does have some understanding that how readily he decided to look past what Jamil did to him was, like, not exactly a typical reaction even back home. And everything is worse here. ]

Look, I promise, I can get you out of here tonight. Nobody will... Bad stuff happens to servants around here all the time, they wouldn't know. Please, just...trust me?

[Trust him? Trust Kalim? Jamil absolutely does not trust Kalim to have anything like a safety net for this leap of faith when that's always been Jamil's job.]

And what if you can't? What if your plan fails and I'm still stuck with them and now they know what I'm really doing?

[He'll quite literally be hunted for sport as best, that's what. He doesn't love his current situation, but at least it's better than that.]

How can you guarantee anything?

[ He can't, of course – but getting the Corsairs to help seems so much less terrifying an option than letting Jamil walk away to keep living miserable and in danger and far away in the hope things might work out in his favour. ]

What if yours fails, Jamil? It's not like you have the best track record at this!

[Excuse you, his winter break plans would have worked out just fine if it wasn't for Azul and his cronies, and anyway it's not like Kalim doesn't have an even worse track record with his bright ideas. For all Jamil knows, this little plan is as well-thought-out as all the times Kalim decided to liberate the household menagerie into Asim Park.

But now that the possibility of escape tonight has been dangled in front of him--the thought of returning to the erstwhile viscount and his wife now and playing the perfectly behaved robot for however many months it will still take to pull this off feels unbearable.

Could he really get to walk away from all of this tonight? Right now? It can't possibly be that easy.

His eyes dart back toward the audience, where applause is breaking out to announce the end of the first number. They have until intermission before the couple comes looking for him, but if Jamil decides not to do this and doesn't return now it will be that much more suspicion raised that he'll have to assuage. This feels like the moment of truth.

He looks back to Kalim, at the desperate concern on his face. The desire to help is sincere, of course. Kalim doesn't have a dishonest bone in his body. Jamil believes that Kalim believes they can do this. But does Jamil believe they can do this?

Jamil's hand comes up to his neck, to finger his suppression band, a fidget he's developed to remind himself why he's doing this when everything he's balancing threatens to be come overwhelming. How often has he wished he could just rip it off himself these past several months?

He takes a deep breath. Fuck it--maybe even failing would be better than living like this.]

How soon can you get this thing off of me?

[ Kalim watches him with his heart in his stomach, concern sinking in after the fact that he might actually have gone too far by pointing out how hard Jamil beefed it over winter break – that the insult to his pride is just going to fuel his determination to do this on his own, that he'll walk away now and Kalim will never see him again.

A relieved, hopeful smile spreads across his face when that doesn't happen. ]

Tomorrow, maybe? [ He's guessing – he never had one so he doesn't have the fullest idea of how it works, but he's pretty sure that when people get rescued they usually take them off first thing. ] You'll have to lay low for tonight, though. We can get some people to say they saw you leaving the island, or...or that you made someone mad and you died?

[Jamil sighs. Of course Kalim doesn't actually have a plan beyond "run off and hope for the best," but Jamil is committed to this now which means it's up to him to come up with the details. Business as usual. Already his gears are spinning as he pushes away from the fence that forms a barrier between inside and outside the amphitheater.]

We should leave now. [He nods toward the stage, where they've just finished transitioning to the next scene.] We have about an hour before they come looking for me, and we don't want anyone to realize we've been talking or they'll come after you next.

They're very fond of me, so if they think I've died or been kidnapped there's no guarantee they won't go after the theater for destruction of property. And you'll be the obvious person of interest if that happens. It's probably best I just quietly disappear and hope they aren't so attached that they decide to go looking for me instead of just finding a replacement. We should go to your... safe house, or whatever you have, and then you should return here immediately, hopefully before intermission starts so nobody suspects you.

[He can only hope they can't track anyone through these bands.]

[... Then a particular smile starts to creep across his face. Oh no.]

Or if discretion isn't a concern, we can always go to their hotel room first to gather some starting funds.

[Probably not the smartest idea. But it would be really cathartic.]

[ Kalim hesitates, biting his lip. That would be a bad idea, probably. But it would clearly make Jamil really happy...

It's not just their safety he has to worry about here, though. If this really prompted an investigation it would be bad for the Corsairs, too. If Kalim was being completely safety-first practical, he shouldn't be doing this at all, he should let Jamil go and just hope he makes it out on his own – but that's not an option he can consider for even a second, so it's crammed to the back of his mind immediately. He just has to accept whatever consequences there are...but he knows he still needs to keep them to a minimum.

Very reluctantly, he shakes his head. ]

It's too risky. [ He reaches for Jamil's hand. ] We should go straight to the Staff Quarters – it's not that far, I'll be able to make it back before the intermission for sure.

[Jamil's hand shoots out to grab Kalim's wrist before he can get there.]

Wait! We shouldn't be seen together. You go to the staff quarters by yourself and I'll follow at a distance. Act like you forgot something. Go in for a few minutes, then when you leave, leave the door unlocked. After you get back to the theater, at intermission, tell my--tell them I left a message with you that I had to go back to the hotel for something.

[He's already digging into his small bag for a notepad and pencil and writing the message as he talks. It'll both help sell the ruse and give Kalim a reference in case he forgets any details.]

That should buy us at least until the end of the play. I'll go by the hotel regardless, make sure someone witnesses me there, then sneak back to the staff quarters and wait in your room. The hotel is enough distance from the theater that nobody should suspect you, as long as no one sees us.

[Jamil presses the finished note into Kalim's hand, pretending his own aren't shaking. He looks Kalim directly in the eye, not for any sinister purpose but to make sure he understands. This is critical. They absolutely cannot fuck this up. And if all goes well this will be the last they see of each other directly until the end of the night.

It's a lot of details to keep track of. Honestly, having to rely on Kalim for this is terrifying.]

Their names are Gerliebt von Viscount Arnold and Claudia Pyrmont. Do you understand, Kalim?

[ He swallows, holding the note close to him, and nods like his head is on a spring. It's a much better plan, and he's much less worried about whether they can pull it off, but he feels a bit ashamed, too – an unpleasant little sting that he's not used to feeling along with the uncomplicated relief that Jamil has everything figured out and as long as he does what he says it'll be okay.

It's not that he thought Jamil would be impressed with him for making it this far mostly on his own or anything – okay, maybe a tiny bit! – but, well, he was kind of impressed with himself... Right now he feels as useless as ever. Maybe nothing's changed.

That's okay, though. As long as he can help get Jamil out of this it's fine. ]

Yes! Yes, I got it. [ He meets Jamil's eyes without hesitation as always – although honestly right now he might feel better if he was about to be put under Snake Charmer, if he could wake up a few hours from now with this all over and Jamil already safe. ] I promise, I won't screw this up.

[Jamil holds his gaze for a moment longer. Part of him wants to make some biting comment--after all, when has he ever known Kalim not to screw things up--but the stakes are too high. This could go very badly for them both if they do screw up, and Jamil finds he doesn't want to risk inviting any divine attention.

And Kalim has managed to survive this long without him, which is more than he'd ever have expected several months ago. It'll have to be enough. Jamil nods, then lets go of Kalim's wrist.]

Go. I'll see you in a few hours.

[At least Kalim's bright hair makes him easy to spot in the dying sunlight. Jamil can give him a bit more of a head start.]

---

[It takes Jamil a bit longer than necessary to make the loop from the staff quarters to the hotel and back. He has to be strategic about his path, depending on where he's going and whether he wants to be seen. Maybe he's being a little too paranoid about this, but he is not taking chances.

He goes as far as returning all the way to the Pyrmonts' hotel room, just so the concierge can absolutely say they'd seen him--just long enough to change his clothing and rearrange his hair into something a little less conspicuous, and then dart back out through the lobby when nobody's looking his way. By the time he makes his way back to the staff quarters, it's well into the second half and his heart is in his throat.

Did they come looking for him? Did Kalim deliver the message? Did they buy it? Or did they immediately figure out he's escaped and leave to go looking for him--are they out there right now? Did someone see him leaving the hotel after all, is anyone on his trail--

He slips in to Kalim's room--unlocked as promised, thank fuck--and locks the door behind him with hands shaking so badly it makes the doorknob rattle. Great Seven, this was so stupid. If anybody is after him a locked door will hardly stop them and his self-defense options are limited with his magic bound like this, what was he thinking? He's a sitting duck in this room.

Well. There's nothing he can do about that now--he's made his choices. The only thing left to him to do is crouch on the floor with his back to the wall, facing the door--and wait. At least if someone does try to break in he'll be ready for them.

Hopefully Kalim remembered his keys.]

[ Wow Kalim REALLY wishes he could be unconscious for all this. He hasn't felt this rattled since he first got here, and this is worse – back then he only had to worry about himself, and he also didn't have to spend any long stretches of time standing around politely in the dark with nothing to distract him except a performance he's seen before...!

Passing on the message went fine – the Pyrmonts seemed happy to assume that he was a little flustered for the same reason he pretended he was flustered earlier, and it was easy enough to play along – but the waiting is interminable. He feels like all his hair and fingernails are going to fall out. He feels like he's going to die.

At least nobody is paying any attention to him, and when the time finally comes that he has to see people out, at least he can distract himself chatting to them. He thinks he does an okay job of cluelessly telling the Pyrmonts that he didn't see Jamil come back to the amphitheatre like he doesn't know why that might possibly be the case, but it does make his skin crawl a little to lie to them outright when they seem genuinely concerned.

He can't help wondering... Perhaps if they just told them? That Jamil doesn't want to work for them? Maybe they'd be okay with it and let him go...?

Fortunately he's seen enough that he does actually know better by now, though. He tells them he hopes Jamil is okay, which he can at least say with complete sincerity, and leaves work as briskly as he can manage without drawing suspicion.

When he finally turns the keys in the door he doesn't even have the space in his head to reflect on what a fun new experience it still is to unlock a door himself like he does every other time he comes back here. It takes him a couple of tries, fumbling the keys out of nerves. ]

Jamil...?

[ He says it very quietly as he shuts the door behind him, but as soon as he sees him sitting there his restraint is gone; he launches himself across the room with great force to seize Jamil in a rib-crushing hug.

He does still manage to keep his voice down, but he sounds like he's about to cry. ]

Oh my gosh, you made it! I don't know what I was going to do if you weren't here. Are you okay? Did anyone follow you?

[ Actually he's probably crying already. Sorry About Your Wet Shirt, Jamil ]

Kalim...

[Please don't get tears all over his coat, it's literally his only one.

...is what he'd like to say, but any urge to scold Kalim for anything dies before he can form the words. It hadn't sunk in yet, from only a few moments of frantic conversation and then hours of stewing alone in his anxiety, but here and now with Kalim holding him in a vice grip and openly crying his relief, after suffocating for months completely alone with nobody who could even speak his language...

It hits Jamil that it's a humongous relief that Kalim is here, actually. It's a good thing that Kalim is holding him up because the feeling nearly knocks him off his feet. He'll never humiliate himself by admitting it, or god forbid actually crying in front of Kalim ever, but there's an unmistakable lump in his throat as he struggles to form a response.

He won't hug Kalim back, but he can at least curl his fingers into the fabric at Kalim's waist as he lays lets himself breathe. Just something to keep him anchored. It's been so hard living like this, he can admit to himself now that he's possibly at the end of it.

After a moment or two, Jamil takes a shaky inhale. If he focuses on the pragmatic, he should be able to talk without falling apart.]

I promise you I'm just fine. I don't think anyone saw me, but I can't be sure.

[And there's no way he can relax until they've safely met with the Corsairs. The Pyrmonts will know he's missing soon for sure, if they haven't figured it out already. They've been--affectionate? Non-cruel?--to him so far, but you can never tell how people like that might react if they've been truly angered.

--Can they activate the band remotely? Fuck, he should have thought about that earlier. Should have learned more about these things. He's never experienced it himself, but he's lived in fear of pissing off the wrong person and triggering a little power trip since he arrived. The Pyrmonts strike him as the type who would never use a shock collar on their favorite puppy, but their daughter is another story. He can't help but ruminate on the idea of suddenly being paralyzed, at any time of the day and without warning and being stuck like that until whoever is holding the remote deigns to turn it off. Hell.

Abruptly, he shoves Kalim away--not out of anger but so he won't feel the fear suddenly arcing up Jamil's spine like a lightning bolt. He feels sick thinking about how vulnerable this stupid collar makes him. Unconsciously his hand flies up to worry at the band again, betraying exactly what he's worried about.]

You said we could meet the--meet your friends soon. How soon, Kalim?

[ Kalim sits back on his heels, looking kind of hurt to be pushed away. If Jamil had let him he could have stayed like that all night -- for a moment he'd thought Jamil might actually hug back.

He sniffs, rubs the back of his arm over his face. It's a much less jangly movement than it certainly would have been the last time Jamil saw him; the only jewellery on him right now is a pair of small hoop earrings, a leather strap on one wrist with a few wooden beads, and a cord around his neck attached to some kind of pendant hidden under his shirt. Shockingly minimalist by his standards. ]

I can take you to them tomorrow. [ His eyes follow Jamil's fingers to the suppression band, and he grimaces slightly for a moment before steering himself back to a shaky smile. ] Yeah -- they might be kind of mad, haha, but they can definitely get rid of that.

[Kalim with only minimal jewelry... he's downright naked...

Tomorrow. Right. That had sounded so soon when Kalim had promised it mere hours ago, but how Jamil is realizing how much time that truly is. The sun fully set less than an hour ago--the Pyrmonts had planned on getting a late dinner after the performance--and there's certainly no way he's getting any sleep tonight. He still has an entire night ahead of nothing but staring at the door and breathing, hoping, praying they don't decide he's a valuable enough commodity to actually look for.

And now he has Kalim to manage, too.

Okay, even he can admit that's an uncharitable thought. Even if Jamil is the one who'd come up with this plan on the fly, Kalim has done... surprisingly well for himself. He's made important connections, apparently managed to avoid the slavers at the Servant's Gate entirely, and, well--

Jamil wouldn't have been able to do any of this without him. Isn't that a galling thought? At least to himself, Jamil can admit he's grateful, for once, for Kalim's irrepressible ability to make friends everywhere and avoid consequences.

But only to himself.

And wait a second, actually--]

...Why would they be mad?

[What did you do. He'd assumed the Corsairs would, like, already be in on this.]

[ Kalim laughs nervously and rubs the back of his neck. ]

Um, they might think it would've been safer to just leave you to it? They're really, really big on secrecy here, and those people really liked you, and if they make a big deal about it it'd be bad for everyone...

[ But obviously he didn't have a choice. Hopefully Jamil will understand that, at least. ]

[Oh, is that all. Jamil just rolls his eyes.]

I don't much care what they think as long as they can get this band off.

[It's not like joining the Corsairs was ever on his agenda in the first place. If they don't want him around, he's happy to leave. Regardless, this is... probably a conversation they need to have.]

...I don't know whether they'll make a big deal or not. I tried to leave as little evidence as I could. As far as I know, they thought I liked working for them, so it depends on whether they even think me capable of escaping.

[He shrugs one shoulder, perhaps a little too nonchalant. His tone is certainly bitter enough.]

If you had a precious pet bird that got out while you weren't looking, how long would you try to go after it? Even if they do realize I escaped on purpose, they might decide it's not worth it and just replace me.

[It's the preferable scenario, and Jamil is trying to convince himself it's the most realistic one. (Even if there is some injury to his ego to think of them just writing him off...)]

[ Phew! Kalim nods in agreement: he does care what they think, broadly, but not about this.

He manages to smile. ]

Right... I mean, you can be pretty convincing, haha! If you'd just disappeared back before winter break I never would've thought... Well... You know.

[ He trails off, looking at his hands. He also wouldn't have ever stopped looking, but that doesn't seem like it would be helpful to say or think about. ]

[Jamil gives Kalim a sharp look, then finally pushes up along the wall to stand, putting some formal distance between them.]

Are you taking this personally?

[Because if he is, Jamil might Actually lose it right now.]

What? N-no!

[ Kalim shrinks back a little from that look. He stays sitting, blinking up at Jamil from the floor. ]

I'm just saying, I bet they really did believe you! You're a really great actor!

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